Metroid Prime review by Tyson
Overall
Buy
Metroid Prime is a fantastic game. Not only does it manage to pull off a good 2D series into the third dimension but it is tons of fun to play as well. This is a game that I would recommend any GameCube owner to buy.
Gameplay
Metroid Prime starts off just as any Metroid game should. Samus responds to a distress call from a Space Pirate Frigate which houses a geneticaly modified alien creature. After battling the creature it is then time to fight the Space Pirates on the nearby planet Tallon IV. What I really enjoyed about Metroid Primes story is that it isn’t told through cinematics or spoken character dialog. You find out about the planet through items you scan with your Scan Visor in the game. It was neat to find out little pieces of information about the planet, the Chozo, and the Space Pirates as you interact within the games world.
Like the previous Metoid games Metroid Prime’s gameplay is split between combat, exploring, and finding new power-ups. I found it to be very enjoyable to go out and find new power-ups that would allow me to access new areas of the world or how previous areas would reveal their secrets to me. Exploring the world is easy thanks to a good map and hint system but jumping around can be a pain at times since you don’t always have the best camera angle to judge distances. You will also have to a do a lot of backtracking as you explore the world of Tallon IV. New power-ups do make it quicker and easier to go through previously explored areas plus there are many spots where you can access the different areas.
Combat in Metroid Prime is able to transition to 3D without many problems. You can lock your arm cannon onto a nearby enemy or you can manaully aim if need be. You get combat upgrades like missiles and various different kind of beams for your arm cannon. Overall I had fun fighting various creatures and bosses throughout Metroid Prime. The only real downside to the combat is that it can spike up in difficulty at times.
While Metroid Prime pulls off most of its features it does have a few weak links. Having to find Chozo Artifacts at the end of the game could of been handled way better. I didn’t enjoy having to switch to different visor modes while fighting some enemies or bosses since this can make other things nearly non visible within the environment.
Control
I was suprised how well the control setup in Metroid Prime holds up. Having a button to lock onto the enemies helps out with aiming. Every button is used on the controller which is both good and bad. Long play sessions would leave my hand hurting which I didn’t like.
Graphics
Metroid Prime has to be one of the best looking GameCube games. There are tons of little details like seeing steam come from your arm cannon or how fog can appear on your visor if you walk past some steam. The framerate is overall pretty smooth but can slowdown when there is to much going on.
Sound
The soundtrack in Metroid Prime is fantastic. I actually enjoyed all the background music in the game which is rare. The various sound effects for Samus sound good as well. Samus being a silent heroine is pretty refreshing when so many games have to have a character talk about everything going on around them.